Can hormonal changes cause weight gain?

Thank you for your questions through The Signal’s online “Ask the Expert” section. Here’s a great question:

Question: I’m 44 and finding it increasingly challenging to keep the weight off. Although I watch what I eat, the weight is creeping up on me. Could hormonal changes have something to do with it? My energy is not what it used to be and I don’t have the motivation to workout.

Answer: As a woman enters her 40s her hormonal “profile” begins to change. Different women experience these changes at different ages and in different manifestations. What is consistent however — is that your body “panics” when hormone levels start dropping. Therefore, your body starts “hording” the hormones.

Hormones are stored in our fat cells together with all other fat soluble things. Even though you might not be experiencing symptoms, your body might be going through some changes which are causing it to hang on to the fat in order to store as much of the hormones as possible.

In addition to hormonal changes, most women in their 40s lose muscle at a rate of about three percent per year. So, you could be doing the same exercises and eating the same foods that you did in your 20s and 30s but suddenly in your 40s — you start to gain weight. Reason being — muscle speeds up your metabolism.

Here are a few options: Do resistance training at least three to five times a week for all muscle groups. Add in cardio and change your food intake (cut out processed foods and eat more fresh, live, whole foods). This will increase your energy and improve your mood levels. Incorporate a well formulated hormonal balancing supplement (if it’s properly manufactured — it will work). EPO or Hormonal Balancer combined with Super Fat Metabolizer (S.F.M.) will extract the fats from the storage cells and will send them to the mitochondria for combustion. (S.F.M. is not the conventional fat burner that wipes out your metabolism afterwards).

Cheryl Broughton is an author, professional speaker, fitness TV show host, director of The Fitness Edge Boot Camp, producer, writer and host of Cheryl Broughton’s Secret Weapons. Reach her at (888) 671-6500 or www.FitnessEdgeBootCamp.com.